Report: Ex-Kings coach George Karl elected to Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
George Karl clashed with DeMarcus Cousins and didn’t enjoy much success during two ill-fated seasons in Sacramento, but he won at virtually every other stop along the way in a 27-year NBA coaching career.
The Athletic Shams Charania reported Thursday that Karl, 70, one of the winningest coaches in NBA history, has been voted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. The enshrinement ceremony will be held Sept. 9-10 in Springfield, Massachusetts. Other inductees will reportedly include Manu Ginobili, Tim Hardaway, Bob Huggins and Swin Cash.
“It’s the greatest honor of my career to be elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame,” Karl tweeted. “Basketball has meant everything to me and I’m thrilled beyond words.”
Karl amassed a 1,175-824 record in 1,999 games over 27 seasons in the NBA. He is sixth on the all-time wins list, trailing only Gregg Popovich, Don Nelson, Lenny Wilkens, Jerry Sloan and Pat Riley.
Karl played for Dean Smith at North Carolina and spent five seasons with the San Antonio Spurs before beginning his coaching career as an assistant with the Spurs in 1978. Karl was fired after two years as head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers (1984-86) and Golden State Warriors (1986-88) before finding success with the Seattle SuperSonics.
Karl went 384-150 (.719) with seven playoff appearances in seven seasons in Seattle; 205-173 (.542) with four playoff appearances in five seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks; and 423-257 (.622) with nine playoff appearances in nine seasons with the Denver Nuggets.
The Nuggets fired Karl after he was named NBA Coach of the Year following a 57-win season in 2012-13. The Kings hired Karl in February 2015 after firing Michael Malone earlier in the season.
Karl and Cousins clashed repeatedly in Sacramento. Karl famously wanted the team to suspend Cousins following an profanity-laden tirade in the locker room, but the organization refused. Cousins has called Karl the worst coach he’s ever had. Karl has called Cousins the player he hated the most.
Karl went 11-19 in his first season with the Kings and 33-49 in his second season before he was fired on April 14, 2016, marking an unceremonious end to his long and illustrious coaching career.
This story was originally published March 31, 2022 at 4:33 PM.
